No. 2 Texas put on a stunning display of power and accuracy, sweeping top-ranked Nebraska 25-22, 25-14, 25-11 to win the NCAA women’s volleyball championship on Sunday in Tampa, Fla.
The Longhorns peaked at the right time, repeating as champions by dominating a Nebraska team that had lost just once all season. Texas got 16 kills from Madisen Skinner and nine from Jenna Wenaas while Asjia O’Neal added five service aces and three blocks, and Ella Swindle distributed 21 assists.
The Longhorns won their fifth national title after making their 10th championship match appearance and seventh in the last 15 seasons. Texas is the first school to repeat as champions since Stanford in 2018 and 2019.
The Cornhuskers were playing in their 11th NCAA final all-time and fell short of capturing their sixth championship.
Texas (28-4) held the Cornhuskers to just .013 hitting, forcing Nebraska into 19 errors. Harper Murray led the Cornhuskers (33-2) with seven kills while Bergen Reilly has 17 assists.
The Longhorns led the first set 22-19 but Nebraska answered with three straight points, the second of which was recorded when Texas was assessed a red card for the Longhorns being out of rotation.
Texas was undeterred by the gaffe, reeling off the set’s final three points on a dual block by O’Neal and Molly Phillips, a kill by Skinner and an ace by Keonilei Akana to win the set.
The Cornhuskers opened up a 10-7 advantage in the second set. Texas got a kill from Skinner to get O’Neal to the service line and she responded with four aces to help forge an 11-point run that resulted in an 18-10 Longhorns lead.
That run was too much for Nebraska to overcome, as two kills by Wenaas and a pair of aces by Swindle set the table for a final attack error by the Cornhuskers that clinched the second set for Texas. The Longhorns had seven aces in the set.
Texas carried momentum into the third set, bursting away from a 7-5 advantage via a 7-4 run capped by a kill by Phillips. Nebraska got a kill by Merritt Beason to pull within 14-10 but that only riled up the Longhorns, who scored 11 of the final 12 points of the match, including the last six.
Texas finished with an ace by O’Neal as the Longhorns celebrated.
–Field Level Media
